Cup dispenser



BARBIER! Jan. 31, 1928.

CUP PISPENSER Filed sept- 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

LIE

Patented Jan. 31, 1928.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE."

CESARE BAR IBIERI, OF NEW YORK, N. 'Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE VORTEX MANUFACTUR- ING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

our DISPENSER.

Application filed September 26 1924. Serial No.'739,980.

This invention pertains to a nested fiat cup dispenser wherein a stack of nested cups is adapted to be fed downwardly between guide channels by chain feed mechanisms adapted to be actuated by a slidable thumb plate each time a cup is withdrawn from the bottom of the container.

It is an object of this invention to provide a nested fiat cup dispenser wherein a stack of nested cups is carried downwardly through the dispenser casing a predetermined distance by chain feed mechanisms each time a cup is to be removed from the casing.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a nested flat cup dispenser wherein a "chain feed mechanism for the cups is adapted to be actuated by means of a slidable thumb plate which is adapted to be moved into a position to permit access to be had. to-

the lowermost cup in the container to permit removal thereof.

- It is a further object of this invention to provide a nested flat cup dispenser wherein a cup chain feed mechanism is adapted to be actuated by a cam bar each time a cup guard plate is moved into a. postion to expose the projecting tip of the lowermost cup to permit removal of said cup from the container.

It is furthermore an object of this invention to provide a nested flat cup dispenser.

equipped with a pair of endless feed chains which are adapted to carry a stack of nested cups downwardly a predetermined distance each time a cup is removed from the lower end of the dispenser immediately, following .the actuation of a thumb plate the movement of which controls the operation of said feed chain mechanisms.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a nested fiat cup dispenser having a bottom outlet for cups in which a thumb actuated guard plate is adapted to bemoved into a position to expose the tip of the lower most cup and at the same time cause actuation of chain feed mechanisms which when closures in the specification and the acco npanying drawings.

Figure 3 is an enlarged transverse section taken on line 38 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary detail section taken on line 44 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary detail section taken on line 55 of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a front elevation of the thumb guard plate and cam bar removed from the dispenser casing.

Figure 7 is a transverse section taken on line 7-7 of Figure 1.

As shown on the drawings:

The reference numeral 1 indicates a back plate or mounting plate having a plurality of apertures therein for the purpose of receiving mounting screws to hold the mounting plate in position 'upon a wall or support. Hinged to the upper edge of the mounting plate 1 is a cover 2. Integrally formed along discharge slot 8 the middle portion of which is enlarged as indicated by the reference numeral 9 while the end portions 8 are narrow, Rigidly secured to the inner surface of the container front plate 5 is the flange 10 of a stationary cup guide channel 11. The stationary guide channel 11 is slightly inclined as illustrated in Figure 2 with the upper end of the guide channel nearer the side wall of the container than the lower end of said guide channel. Struck from the upper end of the trough portion of the guide channel 11 is an outwardly and downwardly curved guide finger 12 over which an endless cup feed chain 13 is trained. The chain 13 passes downwardly through the guide channel 11 and near the bottom of said guide channel,

- idly secured to or formed on one end of a shaft 16, one endof which is journalled in a flange formed on the lower end of the guide 11 while the other end of said shaft is journalled in an opening in the guide flange 10. Also mounted on the shaft 16 is a ratchet 17 adapted to be actuated by means of a pawl 18. The pawl 18 is supported on an upwardly directed projection or lug 19 which is integrally formed on one end of a cam plate or bar 20.

The middle portion of cam bar 20 is enlarged at 21 and is provided with an inclined cam slot 22. The cam bar 20 is provided with longitudinal slots 23 and 24 (Figure 6) through which pins 25 project. The pins 25 support the cam bar in position. The pins 25 are secured to the lower portion of the flange 10 and the flange 26 of a movable guide 27. One margin of the flange 26 is turned at an angle to form a side flange 28. The flange 26 of the guide member 27 is provided with transverse slots 29 (Figure 2) through which the pins 30 project with the ends of said pins secured to the front wall 5 of the container. The movable guide 27 is also inclined with respect to the side wall of the container so that the two guides 11 and 27 are spaced farther apart at their upper ends than at their lower ends so that when a stack of flat nested cups is positioned between said guides their downward movement is retarded and the cups are slightly expanded to permit the cups to move downwardly toward their discharge position when advanced by the feed chains. Slidably mounted upon the flange 26 between one portion of the guide 27 and the side flange 28 is a slidable cam plate 31 having a pair of cam slots 32 therein through which the pins 30 project. The upper end of the cam plate 31 is bent over at an angle to form a finger piece 33 to permit the cam plate to be actuated to cause the guide 27 to be moved inwardly or outwardly away from the stationary guide 11.

Struck from the upper portion of the movable guide 27 is an outwardly and downwardly curved finger or lug 34- over which a second endless cup feed chain 35 is trained. The chain 35 passes downwardly and is trained around a sprocket secured on one end of a shaft 37 the ends of. which are journalled in suitable flanges on the lower end of the guide 27. Also mounted on the shaft 37 is a ratchet 38 adapted to be actuated by means of a pawl 39. The pawl 39 is pivotally supported in a downwardly directed lug 40 which is integrally formed on the lower edge of the cam bar 20 (Figure 6 Also secured to the lug 40 is one end of a control spring 41 the other end of which is secured to a pin 42 secured to the inner face of the front wall 5 of the container.

The cam bar 20 is adapted to be actuated angle at 45 (Figure 1) to permit the lower end of the plate 44 to project out through the enlarged middle portion 9 of the cup discharge opening 8-9 of the container. The lower projectin end of the slide plate is shaped to atfor a thumb piece 46 to permit manual actuation of slide plate 44. The slidable thumb plate 44 is provided with longitudinal slots 47 through which pins 48 project. The pins 48 are secured to the inner face of the lower portion of the front wall 5 of the container.

The operation is as follows:

The improved dispenser of this invention is of the feed chain type and embraces the mounting plate 1 which is adapted to be secured by means of screws or other suitable means to a wall or other support. The mounting plate, of course, is secured in position when .the cover 2 is raised and the container 45 is swung into open position. \Vhen the container is in open position an operator may engage the finger piece 33 and pull outwardly on the same thereby causing the cam plate 31 to slide outwardly over the flange 26 of the guide member 27. Outward movement of the cam plate 31 causes the cam slots 32 to pass over the pins 30 thereby causing both the cam plate 31 and the guide 27 to slide transversely or move outwardly away from the stationary guide 11. The slots 29 in the flange 26 permit transverse sliding of the guide member 27. It will thus be noted that the guide 27 is adapted to be readily moved away from the stationary guide 11 to increase the distance therebetween so that a stack of flat nested cups may be readily inserted through the top of the container between the separate guides 11 and 27 with the creased upper corners of the nested cups in contact with the conveyor chains 13 and 35. The container may thus be filled with a stack of flat nested cups after which the operator manually pushes (l(l\\'ll\\'tll'tll on the linger piece 33 thereby causin the movable giiide.27 to be moved toward the stationary guide it to slightly clamp the nested cups between the inner laps of the endless conveyor chains 13 and 35. The two guides 11 and 27 converge downwardly so that the cups in their downward movement through the container are slightly compressed to partially open the cups.

With the container filled with a stack of nested cups and with the movable guide returned to normal position to hold, the cups in position the filled container is swung upwardly into the position shown in Figure l and the cover 2 closed to hold the container in vertical position ready for use.

Normally the mechanisms are as illustrated in Figure 2 with the control spring 41 acting to hold the cam bar 20 in the position shown in Figure 2 with the thumb piece 46 in its lowermost position disposed in front of the projecting tip of the lowermost cup which projects out of the bottom of the container through the restricted slot 8-9.

The container is now in a position ready to be used. To remove a cup from the container the thumb of an operator is pressed against the thumb piece 46 while the forefinger of the operator is engaged against the back of the tip of the lowermost cup. The thumb piece is now pushed upwardly thereby causing the plate 44 to slide upwardly with the pin 43- moving in the cam slot 22 of the cam bar 20. The cam bar 20 is thus moved transversely from the position shown in Figure 2 toward the right hand side of the container looking at Figure 2. With the transverse movement of the cam bar 20 the pawls 18 and 39 simultaneously engage the ratchets 17 and 38 thereby causing rotation of said ratchets and the respective shafts 16 and 37. With the rotationi of the shafts 16 and 37 the sprockets and 36 are simultaneously rotated thereby causing operation of the endless conveyor chains 13 and 35 through a predetermined distance. The inner laps of the chains having engagement with the corners at the open ends of the cups cause the stack of cups to be fed downwardly in the container a predetermined distance towards discharge position. Simultaneous with the pushing upwardly of the thumb piece 46 the thumb of the operator slips downwardly off of the thumb piece into engagement with the front portion of the tip of thelowermost cup so that the tip of the cup is engaged between the thumb and the forefinger to permit the cup to be easily drawn from the container out through the discharge opening 89. As the lowermost cup is removed from the container the spring 41 acts automatically to return the cam bar into the position il-. lustrated in Figure 2 thereby retracting the pawls 18 and 39 and at the same time causing the plate 44 to lee-moved downwardly to again position the thumb piece 46 in front of the next cup which now projects from the bottom of the container.

It will thus be seen that each time the thumb piece 46 is pushed upwardly the chains 13 and are simultaneously actuated to cause downward feeding of the stack of cups'within the container a predetermined distance each time a cup is removed from the bottom of the container.

I am aware that many changes may be made, and numerous details of construction may be varied thr ugh a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and I therefore do not purpose limiting the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the prior art.

I claim as my invention:

1. A nested flat cup dispenser comprising a mounting plate, a container pivotally mounted thereon,a cover for said container pivotally supported on the upper end of said mounting plate, a cam bar movably mounted in said container, a plurality of cup feed mechanisms within said container adapted to be simultaneously actuated by said cam bar to cause feeding ofa stack of cups through said container, and a thumb piece connected with said cam bar adapted to be manually operated to cause actuation of the cam 'bar each time a cup is withdrawn from the lower end of said container. z I

2. A nested fiat cup dispenser comprising a mounting plate, a container having the lower end thereof pivotally supported on said mounting plate, a cover for said container pivotally mounted on the upper end of said container, a plurality of endless cup feed chains within said container, and manually operated means for simultaneously' operating said endlesschains to feed a stack of cups downwardly through said container a predetermined amount each time a cup is withdrawn from said container.

3. A nested cup dispenser comprising a mounting plate, a container mounted thereon, a plurality of cup guides in said container, endless chains supported on said cup guides adapted to engage a stack of nested cups therebetween, a mechanism for simultaneously operating said endless chains, and a thumb plate adapted to be manually operated to cause said mechanism to simultaneously actuate said endless chains to feed the stack of cups downwardly through the container a predetermined amount.

4. A nested cup dispenser comprising a container, chains mounted therein adapted to engage a stack of nested cups therebetwecn a mechanisnr for simultaneously operating said chains, and a member adapted to be manually pushed out of the way to actuate said mechanism and atford access to the lowermost cup in the container to permit withdrawal of said cup.

5. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, a stationary guide therein, a movable guide therein, chains passing through said guides adapted to engage a stack of nested cups therebetween, a cam bar, a plurality of mechanisms adapted to be simultaneously operated thereby to cause simultaneous operation of said chains to feed the stack of cups through the casing, and a slidable member projecting from said casing and connected with said cam bar and normally positioned to conceal the tip of the lowermost cup in said container, said slidable member adapted to be manually moved to actuate said mechanism, and expose the tip of the lowermost cup to permit withdrawal of said cup from the container.

6. A nested flat cup dispenser comprising a container, a stationary guide therein, a movable guide therein, means for moving said movable guide toward and away from said stationary guide, conveyor chains movable in said guides adapted to engage a stock of nested cups therebetween, a movable bar, mechanisms mounted on the ends thereof adapted to actuate said chains, a slidable plate connected with said movable bar, and a thumb piece integrally formed on said slidable plate and projecting from the lower end of said casing with the thumb piece positioned to conceal the projecting tip of the lowermost cup in said container, said thumb piece adapted to be manually pushed into a position to cause said slidable plate to operate the movable member to cause feeding of the stack of cups downwardly through the container by said chains each time a cup is drawn from the container. I

7. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, guides therein, means for adjusting one of said guides with respect to the other, chains passing through said guides adapted to engage a stack of nested cups therebetween pawl and ratchet mechanisms for operating said chains, a cam bar having a cam slot therein and connected to cause simultaneous operation of said pawl and ratchet mechamsms, a slidable thumb plate projecting from said casing, and a pin on said thumb plate engaging in said cam slot to cause operation of the cam bar when the thumb plate is moved into a position to expose the tip of the lowermost cup in said container.

8. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, a plurality. of endless chains mounted in said casing adapted to engage a stack of nested cups therebetween, a mechanism for simultaneously actuating said endless chains to cause the same to feed the stack of cups through said casing a predetermined (11stance, a slidable thumb plate connected with i said mechanism and adapted to be manually moved into a position to operate said mechanism and at the same time expose the tip of the lowermost cup to permit withdrawal of said cup from the container, and means connected with said mechanism for simultaneously returning said mechanism and said thumb plate to normal position with the withdrawal of a cup from the container.

9. A nested cup dispenser comprising a container, guides therein, chains in said guides adapted to engage a stack of nested cups therebetween, sprockets for operating said chains, ratchets for operating said sprockets, a slidable cam bar, a plurality of awls supported thereon adapted to coact wit said ratchet to simultaneously operate the same, a slidable late connected to operate said cam bar w en said slidable plate is moved into a position to permit access to be had to the tip of the lowermost cup in said container to permit withdrawal of said cup from the container, and means for automatically returning the cam bar and said late to normal position when the slidable p ate is released and a cup is withdrawn from the container.

1 1 0. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, a slidable thumb piece projecting from the casing with the rojccting end of said thumb iece normaly positioned to conceal the tip of the lowermost cup of a stack of cups disposed in said casing, a bar slidably mounted in said container adapted to be actuated by the thumb piece when the same is pushed into position to expose the tip of the lowermost cup in said container, 9. spring connected with said bar for returning the same to normal position when the thumb piece is released, and a plurality of chain mechanisms in said container engaging said stack of on s therebetwecn to cause feeding of the stile of cups through the container 11 redetermined distance each time said bar is actuated by the inward movement of said thumb plate.

11. A nested cu flat dis enser comprising a casing, a plura 'ty of c ain mechanisms therein, means for adjusting one of said mechanisms with respect to the other to permit .the chain mechanisms to engage a stack of nested cups therebetween, a slidable bar connected to cause simultaneous operation of said chain mechanisms, a thumb plate coactin with said slidable bar adapted to be manually moved into a position to actuate said slidable bar and at the same time expose the tip of the lowermost cup in said container to permit withdrawal of said cup from the container as the thumb plate is released, and a spring connected with said slidable bar for returning the slidable liar and said thumb plate to normal position. 12. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, a plurality of cup feed mechanisms therein adapted to engage a stack of nested cups, means for simultaneously operating said mechanisms to cause the same to advance the stack of cups a predetermined distance in said container, a control device connected with said meansfor returning the same to normal position, and a manually actuated member connected with said means adapted to be moved into a position to actuate said means to cause operation of said cup feeding mechanisms and the exposure of the tip of the lowermost cup in said container to permit withdrawal of said cup from the. container.

13. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, chain mechanisms mounted therein for engaging a stack of cups therebetween, and a mechanism adapted to be manually operated to cause actuation of said cup feed mechanisms and the exposure of the tip of the lowermost cup in said container to permit said cup to be manually Withdrawn from the container.

' 14. A nested cup dispenser comprising a casing, a manually operated thumb piece projecting therefrom and normally positioned to conceal the tip of the lowermost cup of a stack of cups disposed Within said container, a bar slidable transversely in said container having a cam slot therein, a pin on said thumb piece projecting through said cam slot to permit operation of said bar, a spring connected with said bar for returning the same to a normal position When the thumb piece is released, and chain mechanisms adapted to be simultaneously operated by said bar to cause feeding of the stack of cups through a predetermined distance each time said thumb piece is operated.

15. A nested flat cup dispenser comprising a container, endless supports therein for engaging and holding a stack of nested cups, a shiftable bar projecting from the container, and a second bar postioned transversely of said shiftable bar and adapted to be operated thereby to cause operation of said endless supports with a consequent feeding of the stack of cups through the container.

16. The combination With a nested fiat cup container, of movable means therein engaging opposite sides of a stack of nested cups, and crossed interfitting shiftable bars for operating said movable means to cause the nested cups to be fed through the container.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name.

CESARE BARBIERI. 

